Oil change interval for 2024 Tacoma 4th gen hybrid and gas engines? Synthetic or conventional engine oil?

[TacoFreak]

I guess my point is, in my 45 years of owning vehicles, I’ve never had an oil-related issue, and I’ve run all brands and weights.

Yep - same here. Oil viscosity and brand preferences are kind of a cult that I see in almost every automotive engine discussion I have ever been in. I picked Mobile 1 when there were fewer options available, and I just stick with it because that is what I have always used.

And that cold floor in winter reminds me why I sometimes lubed my driveshaft before it was called for because doing that entailed lots of time laying on freezing concrete if I waited.

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[32spoke]

I assume that might be due to either emissions or fuel mileage. The lower viscosity oil flows better when the engine is cold and might be spec'd to comply with US regs. I ran 0w20 synthetic in my Tundra for years and never had a problem, although it had 3,500 mile change intervals. The 5w30 might be better for areas with cooler temperatures than most of the US.

I plan to do what @mattski2112 is doing. One early change, and then 5k intervals after that. I agree - cheap insurance and I think the long intervals are mainly to save manufacturers money since oil changes are often included anymore.

5W30 synthetic has a higher viscosity index than 0W20. 0w20 is lower viscosity oil, and lower viscosity liquids are more thermally conductive yet fail at lower temperatures vs thicker/higher viscosity oils, but flow better at lower temps. If Toyota spec’s 5W30 synthetic oil for European T24A-FTS engines, then I would guess that 0W20 oil is solely for government mileage requirements.